Rained out!

This morning we ladies went to Bible study where Linda was reunited with many of the ladies. She got many hugs and distributed some at the behest of my mom. Justin joined us for worship and lunch. We were all there today minus Betty who has tummy troubles which prevent her dining out at this time. It was fun for us to be gathered around the table at Chili's with our group, Linda is comfortably one of them!

Sadly, by the time we were leaving the restaurant, it was heavily clouded and beginning to drizzle. Nuts! No pool for us today! Guess that means nothing but movies for us and TV viewing while we schnudder. Or work on our iPads. 

Justin took this panoramic view of our counter with our buffet laid out on it. Hard to believe we were not able to polish it all off!

When it was time for dinner, Justin laid out a marvelous buffet for us using our leftovers from previous outings. I see mac 'n cheese, a Monte Cristo from Metro Diner, pancakes from Pengree's, shrimp from the Breeze, plus other delights. There was plenty for us to choose from and then some! Later Justin will make us a root beer float if we're hungry!  Linda and I will have time to watch two movies tonight before bed. All this rain is wearying and wearing! Ruining my weekend plans but we are managing. 

Ringing the Beall

This morning Linda and I both slept later than usual, not getting up to watch for the sunrise. After watching Fox & Friends for a bit we decided to go to have breakfast. I chose Pengree's for us, having already dined at Grumpy's and at Metro Diner. I'd never had breakfast at Pengree's so it was sort of new for me as well as for Linda. I brought home my leftovers to enjoy another time---the short stack being a bit much for one sitting. 

As soon as we got back home again, we changed into our swimsuits to get out to the pool before it stormed. There were a few people out there, mainly in the kid's pool and the teen's end. Linda and I paddled around and around the pool, doing 'my laps' as I call them. About 45 minutes into it I heard thunder so we sat out to drip off before heading upstairs. As we dripped, Mo and Ro showed up, just in time for the thundering to increase. I got a few minutes to discuss the Presidential race with Ro while Linda and Mo talked about surgeries and her daughter, Danielle. She had a similar abdominal problem as Linda's so the ladies compared notes on that.  

While we were chatting, Justin did a Face Time call to me from the river room, showing us what the sky looked like to the east, fearing we weren't aware of what was coming our way. Those with me were tickled that he saw fit to let us know, being concerned our well-being like that. Mo and Ro decided to leave, too, and come back tomorrow, weather permitting.

Linda and I got our clothes changed yet again and headed out to go shopping at Beall's. We beat the storm by only a few moments. As we browsed the racks, we heard great cracks of thunder and the roar of rain on the roof of the store. At one point the lights clicked off but came right back up again. Such things did not deter our searching, though, as we made our way to the fitting room. Both of us were successful in finding some new tops. Mission accomplished! My friends and others who see me will be glad to have me wearing something different for a change!! Our purchases earned Beall's Bucks which we are giving to Janet B. at church tomorrow in hopes that she will have time to spend it!

The rest of the afternoon was spent at home watching "Blue Bloods" and some other TV until it was time for dinner. Linda and I had picked up some Papa Murphy's Pizza for our dinner since I had some coupons to use. One had already expired but the rest were still good. Justin took care of baking the pizza while he made up a batch of his apple dumplings which we had for dessert later. Linda and I watched "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" this evening. She brought along several movies for us to watch and thanks to the weather, we are getting them watched!  

Our hopes are that after church and lunch tomorrow we can get out to the pool again, but the forecast is not promising. The thunder storms here are not calming, I refer to them as window rattlers, because my stuff hanging in or on the windows rattles when it booms. And then, the storm is over---just like that! Summer storms....

Gearing up for the weekend

This morning Linda and I joined my friend, Ollavan, for a late breakfast/early lunch at Metro Diner. She wanted to treat us because Linda had brought her some cheese curds at my request. O. just loves them so it's such a special treat for her that she chose to take us to eat. 

But first, Linda and I stopped in at Basketique Tea Room to do some shopping. I had a gift certificate (also from Ollavan) to spend and Linda needed a few things to take home with her. She is in love with the muffaletta which is served at the teas, as does Tommy. Pat had two jars on hand---one for Linda and one for Tommy!

Back to Metro---O. was already there but we were seated just as we arrived at the Diner. She had breakfast food but Linda and I chose from the lunch menu. We had excellent food and great conversation. One 'bad' thing about Metro is that people are always awaiting a table so one hates to sit around talking too long, which would be rude to those waiting. Still, we enjoyed our time together. I had another to-go box with me when we left.

Since it was such a lovely day (no rain yet!) we went out to the pool. Oh, it was great! My hopes are that this being the first day of our long weekend at the pool we will not be rained out. We paddled around as people came and yet, including Nancy M., Mark and Patty, and later, Burney came out. I was glad to see him again before he left for vacation. His family and he is going on an Alaska cruise, his first. I advised him to dress in layers, but he is tougher bird than am I. He is the last one out of the pool in the fall and the first one back in. Sometimes I think he can swim all winter long. Like I said, he is a tough bird from ND!!!

Linda sporting my white hat to provide extra shade. We are careful with her delicate skin.

While I can easily stay out there most of the afternoon, my friend cannot so we went upstairs and changed into our loungewear for the evening. Having no other plans for dinner, Linda and I ate leftovers.  After watching Jeopardy!, we watched some TV before heading off to bed. The rain and gloomy skies makes us groggy. Thanks to the more than regular rains, we've gotten plenty of movie and TV watching in. I discovered that "Last Man Standing" is being shown on the county music station so we've been enjoying episodes of that. Can't wait until the season resumes later this month---about the only show I watch 'fresh' as compared to rerun!!  

Enjoying the Breeze

This morning Linda and I drove over to Victory for Bible study, our last time meeting at the tables in their kitchen. Next week their VPK program resumes, so we'll meet in the back of the church instead. Anyway, they had been 'warned' that Linda was joining us this week so there were plenty of seats at the tables. Linda even got a chance to read a portion of the text for which we'd done our homework yesterday afternoon.

Stephanie, Erica, Jean, and me at my home in 2013

The study was good, even better today because it's Stephanie's first time joining the group since retiring in June. Almost immediately after retiring she headed to her mom's house in WI to be with Jean through her knee replacement surgery. What a good daughter she is! A few years ago we played trivia together once a week at Johnny Angel's Diner but that ended so our visits were fewer. Later, we attended Bible Information Class together at Victory. Now, they will be weekly again!

I had pre-arranged with Dawn and Stephanie to join Linda and me for lunch at Bahama Breeze. Oh, I just love dining here alfresco. It's like being on vacation which I know is silly because I already live in FL. What was somewhat odd was that Stephanie and Dawn, both members of the same congregation, had to basically be introduced to each other. This is a problem when church's have more than one service, ending up with two separate congregations. I was unknowingly playing match-maker for these two and now they've gotten to know each other a bit better. Dawn lives in St. Augustine so doesn't come to church more often than worship and this study on Thursdays. I can't imagine the class without her!

The breeze was nice, in keeping with the name of the restaurant. Linda and I enjoyed adult beverages (Stephanie abstained because she wanted to do some things around the house this afternoon, and not sleep!) which helped to get Linda even warmer. It was 87 above zero outside which is just right for us who live here but too hot for my friend. We left the restaurant and stopped at Target in the Town Center to get soda and hamburger ($3.99 a pound!). She greatly appreciated the A/C in the car on the ride home. 

Because we were going to dinner tonight at The Club, we opted to not go out to the pool, which would have helped us to cool off. Instead we watched some TV and worked on our iPads until The Five. There may or may not have been a nap in there, too........We must be fresh for lovely steak dinners later at The Club!

Nancy W. met us two ladies there. We all ordered the steak from the special grille menu. The waitress boxed up my salad for me and was going to keep it in the fridge in the back to send home with Nancy later, but we forgot about it when we left. Shoot! I had about 3/4 of my steak remaining plus half my potato which will be good another time. Linda had leftovers as well to add to our collection in the fridge. We just need a day or two to polish off our leftovers until we start again!

Rain on our parade

This morning Linda and I were greeted by this lovely sunrise. I am thrilled that she is getting to see some this visit, as compared to last September when it was too overcast in the mornings to see such skies. Even caught a fish jumping, or finishing its jump in the near center of the shot. 

This morning we ladies went out for water exercise class, having great fun laughing and talking during our routines. I am mainly at fault here, as you might guess, But we have the ability to multi-task AND get a workout accomplished.  

Here is Linda at the pool. Again I caught her in the middle of something, perhaps sticking her tongue out at someone! 

The weather did not encourage us to remain outside for lunch today so we came upstairs and enjoyed leftovers instead. Our plans were to go to Target for soda and hamburger, plus I wanted to get a pedicure (something I'd planned to do before Linda arrived). As we walked out of the condo, the heavens opened and it began to pour. We turned right around and went back into the house. The sale is still on tomorrow so why go out in a storm?  

Instead of shopping and my foot grooming, we spent our afternoon hunched over homework for tomorrow's Bible study in Isaiah 60. I had an extra folder with the worksheets in it which Linda used. We alternated reading the passages and looking up the references, etc. for answering the questions on the sheets. That was fun to do, as Kim and Linda would. 

Speaking of Bible study---a week or so ago, I had been contacted by the pastor, asking if I would be willing to host a midweek Bible study at my house. This would take place during the time of Linda's visit, and because I'd already made other plans, I told him I'd have to clear it with her first. She said it was fine to do that so let him know we were good to go. The study was being aired from MLC and would be a on-line live, interactive session. Folks could come here or to church for the class, using the small group theory of study. 

Linda was surprised she had not heard about this class and later asked her pastor if FG was not going to participate in the Synod-wide study. He said they were but it didn't even start until the 9th. Oh my! So, after announcements had been made, emails sent, and promotions done in the newsletter, etc., it came to light that the class did, in fact, start later in the month. I let Pastor know this and he was glad I did, saying he must have written down the wrong dates at Conference. Oops! Good thing Linda asked her pastor or I could have a houseful of people here tonight (ever the optimist!) and no study to do.  Not that I mind company, of course, but still...

Therefore, our plans for tonight did not need to change and we walked over to Happy Hour at The Club as originally planned. It had rained this afternoon, of course, making it quite steamy outside. The AC was on in the Garden Room so Linda was comfortable. We shared a table with my friend, Kathy H. and her mom, Betty, plus others. For our dinner, we ordered the grilled cheese with bacon from the tapas menu which was extraordinary. I ate the whole sandwich, plus some of the homemade chips. So very delicious!

Tonight we are watching a movie I like very much, "Tea with Mussolini", continuing our Holocaust-theme started with "Woman in Gold". It is an all-star cast and is also based on a true story, as is Woman in Gold. This a great way to end our day!

Activities are underway

Yesterday Linda and I had a fun and full day of events including going to Grumpy's for breakfast and to the movies in the afternoon with Judy C. Today we started out with water exercise class with the ladies, all of whom knew well that she was coming. They did not know (unless they follow on Facebook) that she arrived ahead of schedule! So she was able to join our class a day sooner than expected. It was an absolutely lovely one, too, with no hurricane or tropical storm to affect us. Thankfully, Erika broke up after she hit land so never amounted to anything in the US. 

Ellen, my neighbor and friend, sent me this photo she took from river room window last evening. It is amazingly beautiful!

So, after our exercise class, about six of us stayed to have lunch around the pool. Marlena took our orders and got us our meals from the kitchen in The Club. Oh my gosh, the most delicious beer cheese soup! I ordered a bowl portion as did Linda so I had some to share with Justin. Linda and I shared a beef and Swiss wrap which was out of this world, too. Oh, my, so very good!

For dinner tonight we went to Koko's, another favorite place checked off Linda's list. They were a bit short-staffed but we didn't really notice. At least, not until I realized they forgot to serve us our cheese rangoons. Theirs are the best rangoons in Orange Park in my opinion. The waitress put in the order but somehow they got missed. No worries, Jimmy cooked us a wonderful meal and all was well with the world. The fridge is full of white to-go boxes! 

Linda brought several movies with her for us to watch. Already we watched "Woman in Gold" which I had purchased after seeing it in the theater. I look forward to sharing it with friends after pool season is over. We also have both movies from the "Marigold Hotel" series to watch, plus she brought "The 100 Foot Journey" which I'd also seen in the theater. We watched that one last night, and it's so good. Love movies with happy endings! 

Linda is here!

Linda came to Florida instead of TS/Hurricane Erika which is just fine with me. Better than fine---great!! Originally she was scheduled to arrive on Tuesday at 4:30 pm which was about when the storm was predicted to hit Jacksonville.  Chances are that the flight would never have landed here in FL during the height of the storm which would mean that she could end up spending the night in Atlanta (she'd rather go to jail than go to Atlanta!!). Tommy arranged for her arrival date to be Sunday instead, before the storm was expected. This plan change happened on Friday evening when the predictions for our area were more dire. Fortunately Erika broke up and basically became less of a threat, and now Linda gets an extra couple of days here with us!!!

Her flight was due to land at 10:15 pm last night and I was concerned about driving to the airport in a rainstorm. Justin offered to drive and I gratefully accepted. We had torrential downpours much of the day including one about an hour before we left which freaked me out. Thankfully the Lord heard my prayer and allowed us to drive to the airport and back again without being rained on. It was a relief to see Linda waiting for us at the pick-up point and we got her safely home. She and I sat up talking until after 1:00 am while Justin went to bed. The way the forecast looked in the afternoon, he expected to not work today at all, but once again, the weather pattern shifted which meant he was going to have to go in anyway, so needed to go right to bed.

I caught Linda mid-sentence as we waited for our waffles

Linda got up early this a.m. thinking she might see the sunrise but no such luck...She went back to bed and slept until almost 8.  When I came out of my room, she had already had some breakfast but allowed me to twist her arm a bit, pursuading her to go to Grumpy's for breakfast.  Linda treated me, that rascal. We each had the waffle, hers with fruit on top, plus crispy bacon. Loved the time there.  

We decided to go see a movie in the afternoon, "War Room, and arranged to meet Judy  at the theater. Before the movie Linda and I stopped at Target where I got 8 cases of soda which was again on sale four for ten dollars. We are going to return again during the week when we can spend a bit more time browsing instead of dashing in and out.

The movie was quite good, a real tear jerker. Made by the same people who produced the movies "Fireproof" and "Courageous", again covering the healing of interpersonal relationships using faith in the Lord and the Bible. It was powerful but a bit heavy in some of its messages. I won't give it away but it had us leaving moved and emotionally spent. At least this was true for Linda and me, not sure if Judy sobbed like the two of us did.  It was money and time well spent, especially so on a rainy day. 

This evening Justin, Linda, and I picked up Nancy W. to join us for dinner at 4Rivers. It was Linda's first time there and I talked her through the ordering process, telling her she had to order like on "The Soup Nazi" Seinfeld episode, ordering the meat and then moving along the line to get your sides and to pay. She had the brisket like Justin and I had while Nancy had the ribs. I brought home my side dishes and a biscuit, and even some of my brisket. We need more time to eat our leftovers. Good thing she came a couple days sooner to give us more time to eat our leftovers!  Early to bed tonight for these beauties, and Justin, too!